Why Kenyans are trapped in agony that only the voter's card can treat

Those trapped in suffering have a duty to liberate themselves. It is not enough to lament. You must act. Histories of the suffering show that sorrow and grief is unproductive. Only appropriate action can change unhappy fortunes. Grief and sorrow mostly result from misplaced trust, and failure on the part of the trusted.

Kenyans are trapped in agony under the Kenya Kwanza regime. They read every day of a veritable rogue regime, whose captains seem to believe that the business of government is individual self-enrichment. This alternates with selling of fear and peddling lies. We are in the place where State propagandists spew blatant statistical lies, knowing well that they have nothing else to offer, and nothing to lose by lying to you. Led by the lecturer-in-chief, President William Ruto, they move from pillar to post, preaching microeconomic statistics that bear no relevance to lived reality.

The economy has grown by mind-boggling percentages, inflation has declined, they have registered millions in the social health insurance fund, they have created millions of jobs in the “affordable housing” scheme. Millions have borrowed trillions from the Hustler Fund.  

They have built so many kilometres of roads. It’s a crying shame that the State now blatantly elects to feed the nation lies. We are reminded of Orwell, where he has written in Chapter Ten of Animal Farm, “Somehow, it seemed as though the farm had grown richer without making the animals themselves any richer – except of course, for the pigs and the dogs.”  

Each nation has its own class of Orwellian dogs and pigs. Orwell tells us of these characters in his narrative, “... neither the dogs nor the pigs produced any food by their own labour, and there were very many of them, and their appetites were always very good.” 

Of their productivity, the great writer says, “There was, as Squealer was never tired of explaining, endless work in the supervision and organisation of the farm. Much of this work was of a kind that the other animals were too ignorant to understand. For example, Squealer told them that the pigs had to expend enormous labours every day upon mysterious things called ‘files, reports, minutes and memoranda.’”   

And Kenya has more than enough squeaky Comrades Squealer, whose sopranos squeak with the imaginary successes of Kenya Kwanza. They come fully loaded with files, reports, minutes and memoranda. They speak of a country that becomes richer by the day, without making the citizens themselves any richer. To paraphrase the Orwellian character called Old Benjamin the Donkey, life for the ordinary Kenyan is the tale of “hunger, hardship, and disappointment.”  

Yet all this is lamentation, which takes us back where we began. That those trapped in suffering must do something about their situation, as a duty. Lamentation, sorrow and grief freed nobody from hunger, hardship and disappointment. Democracies provide avenues for citizens to free themselves from piggish and allied porcine mischief. We flatter ourselves with the belief in Kenya that we are a democracy. Time to nurture hope is here, once again. 

The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission began registering new voters on Monday. The exercise has disappointingly got off to a painfully slow start. TV footage showed some registration points where nobody showed up. This is scandalous. We cannot be in the habit of lamenting about our situation while also being apathetic about politics and elections.  

There are millions out there who say things like, “I don’t watch the news. I don’t read newspapers. I don’t do politics. I don’t vote. I won’t vote.” You are the origin of the hunger, hardship and disappointment that you lament about. Just because the regime in power has disappointed you is not a good enough reason for you to stop watching the news or, worse still, to abdicate your duty to vote out a bad government; or conversely to validate the government in office.  

This business of electing governments is the fabulous kissing of frogs. The beautiful princess in search of her knight in golden armour among frogs must kiss the amphibians. There are more than enough canines and swine disguised as frogs. Among them is a prince in goldware.

To single him out, we must prepare to kiss these uglies. The Gen-Zs and Millennials, especially, this is your time. Get out and grab that voter’s card today. Get out now, or forever hold your peace. 

Dr Muluka is a strategic communications adviser. www.barrackmuluka.co.ke